


salt of the earth

by letfelicitysoar



Category: VIXX
Genre: M/M, hyuken, jaehyuk, kenhyuk, more trash from me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-26
Updated: 2015-03-26
Packaged: 2018-03-19 17:41:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3618552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/letfelicitysoar/pseuds/letfelicitysoar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jaehwan wanted to prove himself, but he got more than he bargained for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	salt of the earth

**Author's Note:**

> ahhhhhh i’ve always wanted to write a fic like this and when i did write it, it sort of…..died in my drafts so i tweaked it a bit and i’m just gonna post it as it is because i don’t think i will be very active through april or the upcoming months. this was supposed to be more of a prostitute gone wrong situation but uh it got out of hand a little.

The first sign of winter always comes when the windows frost over with snow and Jaehwan finds Hongbin outside counting each new flake as it falls down. There is no other way to know it is winter unless it’s snowing, at least that’s the logic Jaehwan has always taken upon himself, Hongbin’s always the first to call his logic stupid, but Hongbin knows this too. Snow means winter.

It’s chilly when his partner opens the glass doors down to the lab, a gentle breeze entering with him, biting at Jaehwan’s revealed skin. It doesn’t take him long to scowl at the other and Hongbin scrunches up his face in an apology. “Sorry,” he says and he means it mostly, so Jaehwan doesn’t bother with any scolding, they’ve a lot of work to do today anyways. Once Hongbin’s finally seated at his desk does the heater seem to kick in to revert the room’s temperature back to the mild warmth that Jaehwan had previously set it at, the comforting ambience returning and Jaehwan figures he can go over the schedule with Hongbin later.

The day’s work goes by quickly enough, Hongbin isn’t much for conversation when working and Jaehwan finds himself steadily running out of things to bug his colleague with as he figured since week two of knowing Hongbin; the other is just too focused when it comes to work. It doesn’t seem to matter to Jaehwan though, because he’s behind on his own reports and the experiments are slowly decreasing with the oncoming change of weather, flowers aren’t meant to survive in this weather anyways. The greenhouse was supposed to be the solution to that, but after the officials had stated they wanted a more realistic subject, they eventually all closed down and had to settle to growing all plants in open air gardens, not that Jaehwan’s ever minded. The outside has always been a little unsettling, a little forbidden in some areas of the country, Jaehwan knows, so he can never help the feeling of joy he feels from getting the privilege of actually being let outside. The office is the only place where he’s allowed out, the only time Hongbin can disturb the room’s set temperature to take in a lungful of pollen and fresh air without needing to escape the confines of his own home, the same applying to Jaehwan.

So winter isn’t a very gratuitous thing to them, restricting what little access they have to the outside world, aside from videos and the web. Jaehwan wonders what’s so good about being locked underground anyways.

After the buzzer on his desk goes off, Jaehwan’s mind seems to momentarily freeze, a reminder that he works like a machine set on a specific time and he frowns briefly before seeing Hongbin stand from his desk and stretch.

“Are you going to see Taekwoon tonight?” Hongbin asks, arms pulled over his head and a tired sigh escaping his lips. Desk work is slowly killing them.

“Haven’t thought about it,” Jaehwan answers with, his lower lip finding it’s way under a canine. “I haven’t gone by since the sunflowers died.”

Hongbin lets out a breathy laugh, “You know, Hakyeon told me they got some new servicers. Variety would do you some good, Jaehwan.”

“Variety has never done me any good,” snorts Jaehwan and he clicks his computer monitor off. “Why do you think I only work with you instead of twenty others like the rest of the department?”

“Because you’re an isolationist, you like isolating yourself and others,” Hongbin says before quickly continuing, “Or are you just monopolizing me and Taekwoon?”

“Yes, because I  _need_  you two,” says Jaehwan with a sarcastic grin. “Go home to Wonsik and tell him I said hello and that I’m done with you for the day.”

Hongbin laughs softly and grabs his bag, “You could learn a thing or two from me and Wonsik, you know? If you’re so attached to Taekwoon, you should just take him home with you.”

If Hongbin expected an answer from Jaehwan, he doesn’t seem to care as he immediately walks out the lab’s main entrance, the sound of his chuckling following him out. Jaehwan doesn’t move for another five minutes, Hongbin’s words still playing in his head about taking Taekwoon home. It’s silly, but he knows it can be done, he knows that if he requested for a servicer to be permanently placed under his home,  _it could be done_. That wasn’t what happened to Hongbin and Wonsik though, Wonsik wasn’t a servicer, he was an enforcer who happened to develop a mutual fondness with Hongbin and the two requested to be housed together. Living together with a servicer isn’t uncommon, but it isn’t thought of very well in the community and Jaehwan would like to avoid adding onto his never ending list of disappointments that his superiors have always used to scold him with.

So he doesn’t think about it anymore, besides, he enjoys living alone and servicers aren’t apart of the community, they don’t contribute aside from servicing and that would mean Jaehwan would be practically having to take care of another human being’s livelihood and he figures keeping plants alive and keeping another human being alive are two very different things.

But that doesn’t stop him from going over to the servicer’s building, his hands clamming up by his sides as he steps in the brightly lit building and sees Hakyeon’s familiar face smiling at him from behind a counter.

“Hello, Jaehwan. We haven’t seen you in a while.”

“I’ve been a little busy,” he says and it isn’t a complete lie. He doesn’t even need to lie to Hakyeon, there’s no reason to. “Can you call Taekwoon for me?”

“Wow, you get right to the chase, don’t you?” Hakeyeon grins and then shakes his head slowly, “I’m sorry but Taekwoon isn’t available for the night. You can stop by tomorrow night, if you’d like, he doesn’t have any clients then.”

Jaehwan frowns. He really wanted to see Taekwoon  _tonight_. He hesitates before asking, because he knows his position in the hierarchy and if he requested it then he could have Taekwoon pulled from his current client and assigned to Jaehwan for the night instead. He’s never been one to abuse his position, but Hongbin’s words are buzzing through his head and he needs to release this current of frustration somewhere, but Taekwoon’s the only servicer he’s ever had sex with and he isn’t really interested in what Hakyeon calls the ‘professionals’, because they aren’t like Taekwoon.

But then a whole different meaning to Hongbin’s words register in Jaehwan’s head and he shakes it off immediately before it can embed itself in his mind.

Jaehwan is  _not_  fond of Taekwoon the way Hongbin is to Wonsik.

Hakyeon clears his throat and Jaehwan immediately looks up, thankful for the interruption to his thoughts. “His client tonight is a top tier, if you were thinking of requesting him, there isn’t anything I can do about it.”

“Oh—” Jaehwan starts and he wonders if he should just go home now. He doesn’t like variety, he doesn’t like switching and he doesn’t like crowds. He also doesn’t want to be labeled as someone who monopolizes others though. “Actually, Hakyeon, can you do me a favor?”

“Sure, what is it?” Hakyeon asks with a bubbly grin. Jaehwan can feel the knots swell in his stomach already.

“Can I request a room and you just sort of, well, send someone up?”

The male behind the reception counter blinks a few times, the smile beginning to fade before quickly being glued back on, Hakyeon’s eyes gleaming a little too eagerly. “We have a new pool of servicers who got switched with our first section two months ago. If you want, I can chose from them.”

“That’s fine, whatever is most convenient, I suppose,” says Jaehwan, the clamminess returning to his palms. “I just need someone tonight.”

Hakyeon’s smile doesn’t falter anymore as he types a few things on his keyboard, the screen completely obscured from Jaehwan’s sight. There’s a slight pause where Hakyeon’s brow seems to furrow but immediately he straightens himself out and hands Jaehwan a plastic card. “Enjoy your time here.” It’s proper protocol for Hakyeon to say those words whenever he sends a client on their way upstairs, but the muscles in Jaehwan’s stomach only knot up more at knowing that this will be the first time he hears those words and doesn’t see Taekwoon’s face as soon as he reaches his room.

It’s strange, he thinks, because he definitely does not feel any more than he should for Taekwoon, grateful and satisfied for each time that he’s gotten to have sex with the other, for the companionship exchanged between the two. Taekwoon isn’t much for talking, but he listens, he listens to everything and Jaehwan likes that because Hongbin is known to ignore him once he enters work mode. And that’s it, he feels what he feels for Taekwoon as he does for Hongbin. Someone to talk to and enjoy spending time with, it’s all Jaehwan really needs in his life anyways. It’s like when he’s in the lab or the garden surrounded by all the different species of flowers, he feels a light gently spark in him, though much more intense than when he’s with any other human being. Taekwoon is just another joyous thing to keep his life from dulling over in a system that has been keeping him in a straight line for so long.

The soft ding of the elevator indicates he’s reached his room and he pulls the clear plastic card out of the slot, the numbers 070595 printed on in big black ink. The card alone is enough to remind Jaehwan how different this visit is from any other he’s ever had. Servicers work in the same room throughout most of their life, a set of numbers always the same for every single card or visit and Jaehwan has Taekwoon’s room number melted into his memory from all the countless times he’s gone up to see the other.

So when the steel doors pull apart and Jaehwan sees room 070595, he almost lets out a relieved breath at how identical this room is to Taekwoon’s. Of course it would look the same though, he realizes belatedly. All the rooms the servicers use must look the same, he just hasn’t gone to any others to confirm it before, but now, he  _knows_. The room is white like everything else in the building and there’s a rather large bed right in the middle, already made and awaiting to be ruffled from what servicers do best. There’s also a white sofa on the far right of the room, a television set hung on the wall and a small kitchen like area where Jaehwan has seen Taekwoon go to before to get a glass of water or wine. There’s also an open doorway on the left side of the room, it leads to a bathroom that Jaehwan’s never actually felt the need to use aside from the one time he broke a glass cup and got a cut on his hand, resulting in Taekwoon pulling out the first aid kit from the restroom cabinet and bandaging him up. The only other attachment to the room is the closed door that the servicer is known to come in through, but whenever Jaehwan has come, Taekwoon is always already present.

There isn’t anyone inside at the moment though, and Jaehwan figures it’s because his request has been put in so late, so he silently slips in, awkwardly wondering where he should go to wait, if he should just back out now and leave before the servicer arrives.

But not a moment later, the doorknob to the closed door turns and Jaehwan’s mind is far too alert to ignore the young boy who enters it.

It happens right away, quicker than Jaehwan can properly react to, but it doesn’t matter when he sees the servicer right in front of him for the first time and his heart tries to jump out of his mouth but gets caught in his throat instead.

“I’m Sanghyuk,” he says, a tentative smile on his face, but Jaehwan doesn’t notice the uncertainty of it.

He sucks in a sharp breath of air because  _Sanghyuk is beautiful_.

Not in the way that Jaehwan would usually find anything beautiful, not like when he sees the constructed photos of entertainers and thinks they’re beautiful or when he looks at the man made works of art in all the museums that Hongbin drags him to go see and thinks those are beautiful. No, the young boy in front of Jaehwan with his naturally long black hair and thin frame — with those slightly curious almond eyes — is beautiful to Jaehwan in a way he can’t find words for yet. It’s strange, he thinks as Sanghyuk strides over to him in anxious steps, it’s strange because Jaehwan would classify someone that looks like Sanghyuk to be so  _average_ , to be boring and  _not_  eye catching, not in the way that keeps Jaehwan’s eyes completely glued to his form as it draws near.

But Sanghyuk is beautiful and there is no denying that, there is no ignoring the fact that everything about Sanghyuk’s physical appearance attracts all of Jaehwan’s senses.

The kiss comes without warning and without Jaehwan contributing much, which immediately worries Sanghyuk as his fingers hesitantly slip in around his waist, clutching the cotton of his shirt. Sanghyuk’s lips are smooth, there isn’t a single crack in them unlike Jaehwan’s, who has spent countless hours in the lab’s garden chewing away at the skin. They move gently against Jaehwan’s and he momentarily registers how soft Sanghyuk’s skin is when their noses brush together as Sanghyuk pulls away.

“I’m sorry if that was too sudden,” says Sanghyuk, a hint of pink dusting his cheeks.

Jaehwan doesn’t understand the apology because this is Sanghyuk’s job, this is what he does for others, he makes them  _feel good_. It isn’t until the other male begins to pull his hands away from Jaehwan that he realizes Sanghyuk must not think it feels good for Jaehwan because of his lack of reaction from the initial moment that Sanghyuk entered the room.

So he shakes his head and places his hands atop Sanghyuk’s shoulders “No, it’s okay,” Jaehwan mumbles out softly before kissing him again, slowly and gently. It’s weird at first because Jaehwan’s never kissed anyone else before, he’s hardly ever kissed Taekwoon, always feeling that kissing was far too intimate for the type of relationship he and Taekwoon shared. But he also knows that kissing is something most people generally find nice, that it’s something easy to start with and he can feel himself slowly melt into Sanghyuk’s lips.

Sanghyuk is the first to pull his lips apart and Jaehwan follows his lead immediately, the first brush of their tongues send chills down his spine, but it isn’t anything he wants to complain about. The other’s mouth is warm and enticing, drawing Jaehwan closer and closer until he’s pushed Sanghyuk so far back that the back’s of his legs hit the bed. He hadn’t even noticed, just submitting to his body’s desires.

Soon enough though, he manages to push Sanghyuk completely on the bed, his back making a light thump sound as Jaehwan moves his hands to press against the mattress to hold himself up. They continue kissing like that —  _for minutes or for hours_  — Jaehwan can’t keep track of the time as the little whines that escape Sanghyuk’s lips whenever they break for air continue to send his head swimming in whirlpools. It isn’t until Sanghyuk places a hand against Jaehwan’s chest and pulls them completely apart does he realize how invested he was in the kissing.

Sanghyuk’s hair is a mess (did Jaehwan do that?) and his already full lips are even more plump from all the kissing, red and wet as he moves them to speak in a breathy voice. “Wait—” he takes in a few more heaves of air before continuing, “I— What’s your name?”

Jaehwan blinks wildly at him and decides to ignore the question, moving in to kiss Sanghyuk again, but the other fluidly avoids it.

“Please, just— please tell me,” Sanghyuk asks, his eyes darting between Jaehwan’s and the ceiling. “You didn’t tell me it earlier.”

There would be a bubble of heat bursting in Jaehwan right now from irritance, but for some reason it never comes as he answers quickly, “Jaehwan. My name is Jaehwan.” Immediately he swoops back down and captures Sanghyuk’s lips with his, resuming their kissing and it seems like the other isn’t interested in talking anymore as he kisses back enthusiastically, hands coming forward to wrap behind Jaehwan’s neck. When they get back into the rhythm of it, Jaehwan is the one this time to make the next move, his knee brushing onto the soft fabric of Sanghyuk’s pants, right where his crotch is.

As soon as the contact is made, Sanghyuk bites down on Jaehwan’s bottom lip in surprise, the force of it causing him to bleed. He pulls back immediately, tasting the blood on his tongue and he frowns at Sanghyuk. “What’s wrong with you?”

“N-Nothing!” Sanghyuk squeaks out and his eyes are blown out in worry. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do that, please don’t say anything to—”

“Calm down, I’m not going to report you if that’s what you’re worried about,” Jaehwan reassures him and then furrows his brow, staring down at Sanghyuk who refuses to look him directly in the eyes.

“I’m sorry…” mumbles Sanghyuk in a very soft and quiet voice.

And that’s when Jaehwan notices him  _shaking_. Sanghyuk is trembling underneath him, his hands switching between lax and tense on Jaehwan’s nape and his entire body curling away from any other form of touching between the two. Jaehwan doesn’t take another minute to detach himself from Sanghyuk, the other letting out a sound of relief from the lack of contact. He sits on the edge of the bed, brow still furrowed and chest heaving as cold sweat makes it’s way down his forehead. “You’ve never done this before, have you?”

Sanghyuk is in the middle of sitting up but goes very still when Jaehwan asks the question, he doesn’t need to face him to know the look of shock that the other must be expressing. A pregnant moment passes before Sanghyuk sits up fully and shakes his head fervently, “N-No, I have. I have.”

The last ‘I have’ sounds more like he’s trying to convince himself and Jaehwan grits his teeth in annoyance, but from  _what_ , he doesn’t know. He looks down at his hands instead. “Tell me the truth.”

It takes a few minutes, but eventually Sanghyuk swallows the lump in his throat and says, “I’ve never done this before.”

“Oh,” is the most intelligent response Jaehwan can muster and he turns to glance at Sanghyuk who continues to avoid his eyes. There’s a softness to his voice when he speaks, “We don’t have to keep going.” Finally, Sanghyuk meets his gaze, eyes round and blinking slowly at Jaehwan who only manages to smile weakly. “I’m not going to force you.”

“But didn’t you—” Sanghyuk scrunches up his face in confusion and it sends another wave of warmth through Jaehwan. “Didn’t you want…”

“To have sex?” Jaehwan asks casually, the other being thrown off and blushing furiously. He can’t help the burst of laughter that leaves him as his shoulders shake. “I did, but I can’t with you.”

It would be an insult to anyone else, but Jaehwan really means it with sincerity, he can’t have sex with someone like Sanghyuk. Someone who clearly does not want to.

“It’s okay?” Sanghyuk asks, clearing his throat slightly, “I mean, if you want… I can…”

“No,” is what Jaehwan immediately says, shaking his head slightly, “No, I don’t want to anymore. We can just… Talk, I suppose.”

“Talk?” He repeats and Jaehwan wants to laugh again at the cute scrunched up expression on Sanghyuk’s face.

“Yeah,” Jaehwan answers, “We can just talk, if you want or I can leav—”

“No,” Sanghyuk says sternly, “No, the night is too early. I’ll get in trouble if you leave and then—” He suddenly stops and seems to remember something.

“And then?” Jaehwan questions and leans closer, “Are you not allowed to tell me?” The other male stiffens but he nods, lips pursed and Jaehwan isn’t sure how he feels about the sight. “Okay, we don’t have to talk about that, I guess. Can you tell me why is it that Hakyeon thought it’d be funny to pair me with a virgin tonight?”

Sanghyuk seems more flustered by that word if anything and clears his throat again, louder this time and Jaehwan has to stifle his laugh with his hand. “I wouldn’t know about that. I don’t see Hakyeon very often.”

Jaehwan nods at that, he knows that Hakyeon isn’t a servicer and even though he works in the servicer building, he doesn’t interact very much with them aside from briefing and debriefing them on their clients. It’s still a curious thing as to why he figured sending someone like Sanghyuk (someone so beautiful, entrancing, and yet a  _virgin_ ) to Jaehwan on a night where he clearly wanted a good fuck, but he figures that prodding Sanghyuk about it will be fruitless and so instead he goes back to admiring the pretty boy sitting beside him, the overhead light illuminating him well in the artificial night. “Am I your first client?”

“Yes,” Sanghyuk answers honestly, hands balled up in his lap. “I was being trained before I came here.”

“Hm,” Jaehwan hums in response. He’s never really been interested in the lives of servicers, there were a few questions he’s asked Taekwoon before but talking was usually never too excessive between the two whenever Jaehwan visited. “You’re one of the new arrivals to the outer ring, then?”

Sanghyuk nods without answering this time and Jaehwan continues to speak, “I’ve never been to the inner ring before. I’ve read a lot about it though, but all the grandeur has never really compared before.”

“Compared to what?” Sanghyuk asks, his head tilted.

“To the outside. To the sky, to grass, to flowers,” Jaehwan says, images displaying in his memory and then he blinks rapidly at his discovery before looking Sanghyuk fully on.

That’s what it is. That’s what Sanghyuk’s beauty reminds Jaehwan of.

“You’ve been outside?” He asks and Jaehwan blinks slower this time, nodding. “What’s it like?”

“I… It’s hard to explain, really, it’d be easier to simply show you.”

“Can you?” Sanghyuk asks in a very soft voice, “Can you show me what the outside is like?”

Jaehwan sucks in a breath before letting out a sigh and he almost wants to ask Sanghyuk why he doesn’t just go on a computer and look it up himself but then he’s suddenly reminded that servicers probably don’t have any access to technology like that. Jaehwan looks away from Sanghyuk and stares at the marble floor for a while before saying, “I can’t.” He can tell that beside him, Sanghyuk’s deflated, but immediately Jaehwan continues. “I’m not allowed to take any servicer outside the building with me unless I request to house them. You can try asking a tier one, they have access to such things but—” The mistake that Jaehwan makes is looking back up at Sanghyuk and almost instantly he’s hit with that wave of flourishing heat that could melt any frost built up on a window.

The look on Sanghyuk’s face is a mixture of distressed and disappointment, but on someone as young and beautiful as Sanghyuk, it simply looks  _painful_  and the pain is fully inflicted on Jaehwan’s heart strings.

“What’s… wrong?” Jaehwan asks once he’s reminded himself to breathe.

“Can I ask you something?” Sanghyuk’s eyes are flickering around the floor and Jaehwan wishes they would stop that and just look at his for a moment more.

“Yes,” Jaehwan says, “But it could be something else I can’t fulfill.”

“That’s— I think you can,” Sanghyuk bites his bottom lip and inhales, “Is it possible for you to house me?”

Without even thinking about it, Jaehwan says, “It is possible.” And it is, he knows he can get Sanghyuk to come home with him  _tonight_  if he requested it at Hakyeon’s desk, though any real formalities having to do with paperwork would take days, the move could happen tonight, though it would require Jaehwan to sacrifice his visiting privileges to the servicer building for a few weeks at bare minimum. But, he figures out immediately upon his words, he wouldn’t mind that for Sanghyuk’s sake, and that stirs a whole  _lot_  of things in him.

“Then, could you?” Sanghyuk asks haltingly, his eyes still not daring to look up into Jaehwan’s.

“Do you want to go outside that much?” Jaehwan asks, incredulity slipping into his tone. “We’ve only just met tonight.”

“It isn’t just that,” Sanghyuk says, “You’re… You’re nice. Nicer than any of the mentors here or the other servicers.”

“I’m nice?” Jaehwan snorts, “I haven’t done you any favors since meeting you, unless you want to count the making out earlier, but that wasn’t even my best—”

“Not that,” Sanghyuk says with a furious blush and he’s scowling a little, “For not forcing me to have sex with you. I know of some other servicers who’s first time wasn’t so… good for them.”

“What?” Jaehwan blinks at him and Sanghyuk turns a bit to face him. “There are servicers who don’t enjoy sex?”

“I mean, yeah—” Sanghyuk’s face scrunches up, “Everyone has sex differently, didn’t you know that?”

“Of course I knew that!” Jaehwan defends himself from the look of uncertainty Sanghyuk throws his way, “I just thought they never had complaints about it.”

“It isn’t,” he halts and then returns to staring holes into the floor, “It isn’t about complaints. Some people aren’t gentle, they hurt servicers without worry of their well being.”  

To that, Jaehwan stops his teetering to ponder Sanghyuk’s words. “What do you mean?”

“Do you remember your first time?” Sanghyuk suddenly asks and Jaehwan nods. “And it was good?” Jaehwan nods again, of course it was good, Taekwoon was good. “That’s because you had an experienced servicer, but I bet his first time wasn’t good for him. I bet it hurt him a lot. I bet whoever had him first, when he was barely my age, wasn’t very good to him. Servicers work to make their clients feel good, but the clients? They focus on themselves feeling good, not on us. Accident or not, everyone’s first time is different and I hoped— I hoped, I wasn’t hurt too much.”

What little of Sanghyuk’s eyes that Jaehwan can see glass over and Jaehwan has never seen a person cry in real life before, he’s seen it through his computer monitor countless of times from videos, but never in the flesh and so close. But, if Sanghyuk is going to cry, he holds it in and sucks in a deep breath of air. Jaehwan isn’t pleased with what he’s suddenly about to announce, but he decides that something like this might push Hongbin’s words out of his head.

“Sanghyuk,” he says slowly and the other’s ears perk up at the sound of his name. “Do you think if I requested you to be moved in with me, do you think that would stop you from hurting?”

The other male is silent for a moment and Jaehwan fears he might have sounded a bit too strong in his words, but without much haste, Sanghyuk lifts his head and turns to Jaehwan. “Yes.”

“Then,” Jaehwan swallows, “We should go see Hakyeon.”

It isn’t like Jaehwan, but ever since he skipped out on lecturing Hongbin this morning, he hasn’t fully been himself and even the look of surprise on Hakyeon’s face is anything but reassuring of his actions. Jaehwan doesn’t require reassurance though, not when Sanghyuk first smiles at him, eyes crinkling into tiny crescents and Jaehwan can’t help the overwhelming feelings of adoration that drowns his sanity as he rides the monorail in silence with the other, fully aware that this is  _not_  a plant, this is a human being and he will be in charge of all of Sanghyuk’s well being from this point onwards.

“When will I be able to go outside?” Sanghyuk asks when they’ve arrived at Jaehwan’s private living quarters, a whole two stories all to himself, well,  _not completely to himself anymore_.

“After the paperwork for your move has been finished,” Jaehwan answers honestly, his body suddenly feeling very tired. “I can’t freely move you about until you’re legally put under my name.”

“How long will that be?” Sanghyuk frowns and Jaehwan wants to kick himself at how  _cute_  that frown is. How the hell did someone like Sanghyuk become a servicer anyways?

“It could be days or weeks, I don’t know.”

“But, I’ll be able to go, right?” Sanghyuk asks, absolute innocence reflected in his eyes.

Jaehwan grins a little at that, “Yeah. I’ll make sure of that.”

The whole thing happens a lot faster than Jaehwan would have liked, but his number one competitor in life is himself and he’s ready to prove himself (and Hongbin) wrong on all accounts of Jaehwan being stagnant. Unfortunately, Jaehwan is moved to the couch in his living room while Sanghyuk enjoys his much too fluffy bed (this is when he regrets bringing Sanghyuk home), but that first night is mostly uneventful aside from the snoring that wakes (and keeps) Jaehwan up that night.

(Months later when Jaehwan plants a small patch of pale yellow primroses in honor of Sanghyuk who had fallen for the flowers, Hongbin will snort in the corner of the lab and deem himself as Jaehwan’s mentor in love — in which Jaehwan will fervently deny — and Jaehwan will scold him about letting the summer heat in when he’s got the air conditioner set specifically. Sanghyuk will drop by with Wonsik and be nothing but grins and beauty and Jaehwan will most utterly deny that it was love at first sight that made him take Sanghyuk home that night.)


End file.
